Colonic mucins are high molecular weight glycoproteins produced by goblet cells of colonic epithelium. Some studies have indicated that patients with colonic cancers that produce high amounts of mucin have a poorer prognosis than patients whose tumors produce low amounts of mucin. At present, however, the role of mucin in affecting the behavior of colon cancer cells is not well understood. To f...

The genes encoding two merozoite surface proteins of Plasmodium i ax that are related to PvMSP3 [1] are reported. One of these genes was identified within P. i ax gt11 clone 5.4, which was selected by immunoscreening with a Saimiri monkey antiserum. The insert DNA of this clone was used as a probe to isolate the complete gene from a P. i ax DASH genomic (g) DNA library. Antibodies to recombinan...

Due to the wide distribution and heavy pollen production of grasses, approximately 50% of allergic patients are sensitized against grass pollen allergens. cDNAs coding for two isoforms and four fragments of a major timothy grass (Phleum pratense) pollen allergen, Phl p 6, were isolated by IgE immunoscreening from a pollen expression cDNA library. Recombinant Phl p 6 (rPhl p 6), an acidic protei...

Vertebrate enamel formation is a unique synthesis of the function of highly specialized enamel proteins and their effect on the growth and organization of apatite crystals. Among tetrapods, the physical structure of enamel is highly conserved, while there is a greater variety of enameloid tooth coverings in fish. In the present study, we postulated that in enamel microstructures of similar orga...

Twenty-three propane- and butane-utilizing bacteria were isolated from soil samples collected from oilfields. Three of them have been identified as Rhodococcus sp. IMT35, Pseudomonas sp. IMT37 and Pseudomonas sp. MT40. SDS-PAGE analysis of the membrane of Rhodococcus sp. IMT35 revealed the presence of at least four polypeptides induced by propane. Polyclonal antibody raised against a 58 kDa pol...

Ribophorins I and II are two transmembrane glycoproteins that are characteristic of the rough endoplasmic reticulum and are thought to be part of the apparatus that affects the co-translational translocation of polypeptides synthesized on membrane-bound polysomes. A ribophorin I cDNA clone containing a 0.6-kb insert was isolated from a rat liver lambda gtll cDNA library by immunoscreening with ...

Although we are currently unaware of its biological function, the fibril-like surface structure is a prominent characteristic of the rough (Rg) genotype of the gram-positive periodontal pathogen Peptostreptococcus micros. The smooth (Sm) type of this species as well as the smooth variant of the Rg type (RgSm) lack these structures on their surface. A fibril-specific serum, as determined by immu...

A 55-kDa outer membrane protein of Porphyromonas gingivalis W50 is a significant target of the serum immunoglobulin G antibody response of periodontal disease patients and hence may play an important role in host-bacterium interactions in periodontal disease. The gene encoding the 55-kDa antigen (ragB, for receptor antigen B) was isolated on a 9.5-kb partial Sau3AI fragment of P. gingivalis W50...

The transfer of membranes from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi apparatus occurs via 50-70 nm transition vesicles which derive from part-rough, part-smooth transitional elements of the endoplasmic reticulum (TER). Vesicle budding from the TER is an ATP-dependent process both in vivo and in vitro. An ATPase with a monomer molecular weight of 100 kD by SDS-PAGE has been isolated from TER an...

OBJECTIVES To isolate and characterize an asparaginyl endopeptidase from the carcinogenic liver fluke, Opisthorchis viverrini, and evaluate its expression profile, biochemical activity, and potential as an immunodiagnostic antigen. METHODS The full length mRNA encoding an asparaginyl endopeptidase (family C13), Ov-aep-1, was isolated by immunoscreening of a cDNA bacteriophage library of adult...